Cold
It was the eighth day of living together—and the third to last.
Outside, the weather was beautiful. The sky was a brilliant blue, the clouds soft and white like cotton, the air fresh, and a gentle breeze blew by.
It should’ve been the perfect day for a countryside outing. But in front of the European-style villa, three people stood silently, each lost in thought, hesitant to move.
“What’s in your hand?” Gu Yilan gave a glance at the boy’s fully covered face, then let his eyes settle on the three leashes he was holding.
“Rabbits,” Su Zesui replied. He crouched down, hugged one of the three chubby white bunnies, grabbed its soft little paw, and waved it at the man.
They were Netherland Dwarf rabbits he had borrowed from a nearby pet shop.
Today, he would be volunteering—taking the fluffy trio out for an all-day walk.
Gu Yilan: …
The butler hadn’t processed it all yet. Scratching his head and letting out an awkward laugh, he tried to ease the tension. “Little Master really knows how to enjoy life. Finally stepping outside, and you’ve brought little pets along. So cute, haha…”
Gu Yilan didn’t respond. He simply lifted his long legs and headed toward the underground parking lot.
Su Zesui hurriedly tugged the bunnies—who were busily munching on garden grass—and ran to follow him.
One of the bunnies hadn’t even finished its bite when it was suddenly yanked forward, tumbling twice across the ground before reluctantly giving a couple of small hops.
Originally, Su Zesui had considered borrowing a pit bull.
Chubby, fluffy rabbits were too adorable—they attracted strangers who’d want to come over, pet them, and chat with him. A fierce-looking pit bull, on the other hand, could scare off anyone who tried to approach.
But he’d never raised a dog before… and truthfully, he was a little afraid of them.
With his cap pulled low over his eyes, Su Zesui tugged the bunnies and waited with the butler at the entrance to the parking garage.
A few minutes later, a silver-white Mercedes-AMG ONE slowly rolled to a stop in front of them.
The sleek, streamlined design of the AMG One, combining cutting-edge technology with understated luxury, made it the closest thing to a road-legal Formula 1 car.
At first sight, Su Zesui was reminded of the first time he met Gu Yilan at the Speedsters Club.
Back then, he had also been walking with his head down—and accidentally bumped right into Gu Yilan. That moment had been the start of everything.
“Little Master, please.” The butler respectfully opened the passenger door for him.
His job today was to attend to both masters.
“Thank you,” Su Zesui murmured, scooping up his bunnies and climbing into the car.
Once both of them were seated, Gu Yilan started the engine. With his eyelids drooping lazily, one hand rested loosely on the matte-black steering wheel. Outside the window, the scenery blurred into streaks, but his demeanor remained cool and composed—unbothered, effortlessly in control.
But if you looked closely, you’d see the dark circles under Gu Yilan’s deep eyes—evidence that he hadn’t slept well the night before.
“Why do you keep staring at me?” Gu Yilan asked coldly, his gaze fixed ahead as he steered with one hand, thin lips parting to release a cutting remark.
Only then did Su Zesui realize: he’d been staring at the man ever since getting into the car—completely lost in thought.
“Because… because…”
He couldn’t really explain it himself. It was just that Gu Yilan had this pull—he made it hard to look away.
Whenever Gu Yilan was nearby, Su Zesui couldn’t help but glance at him, to see what he was doing, to guess what he might do next. But when Gu Yilan wasn’t around, no matter how fun or interesting the surroundings were, he preferred to lower his head and fidget with his fingers, retreating into his own little world.
He honestly didn’t know why—he could only chalk it up to the man’s strange magic.
“Why…” Su Zesui asked softly, “did you quit?”
Gu Yilan raised a tired eyebrow.
Su Zesui held his breath, then finally added the rest: “…the racing club.”
The moment he said it, the eyebrow Gu Yilan had lifted slowly lowered again—and from the back seat came the butler’s sharp, unmistakable intake of breath.
Gu Yilan clearly heard it too.
But he didn’t react. He didn’t even shift his gaze. After a brief silence, he simply said, “You don’t want to know the reason.”
His voice was steady and flat, with no emotion at all.
Su Zesui didn’t have time to process what that meant before his phone buzzed.
[AAA Butler: Little Master, please don’t ask about that. Seriously. Don’t! Trust me!!]
Su Zesui blinked, then nodded at the message on his screen.
Mr. Gu had many things that were not to be asked about. The racing club was one. The company and his academic background, another. And those faint streaks of red in his cup… definitely off-limits.
Thinking about that, he couldn’t help but recall the jarring scar he’d accidentally touched on Gu Yilan’s arm during his failed escape. That was also a mystery.
——Maybe… it still hadn’t healed from when he helped that old lady cross the street?
“We’re here,” Gu Yilan’s deep voice interrupted his thoughts.
He lived in one of the most expensive areas in the city, and with the AMG One’s blazing speed, they arrived at the central shopping district—their destination—in no time.
Su Zesui adjusted his mask and pulled his cap low, taking a deep breath and gripping the three leashes tightly.
Stepping into a crowded street was, for him, like walking onto a battlefield.
Although the AMG One had a relatively understated design, its luxurious essence as a supercar couldn’t be hidden. The moment Su Zesui stepped out of the car, countless curious or admiring glances turned his way.
He flinched.
No—please don’t try to touch my bunnies.
But soon enough, the people around them seemed to sense something and quickly averted their eyes. Even if they were still curious, they only dared sneak quick glances as they walked by—before hastening their pace and disappearing.
A long, lean shadow fell over him, and Su Zesui realized—Gu Yilan had gotten out of the car.
The man’s monolidded eyes were lowered, his brows drawn with a mix of weariness and quiet gloom, yet his whole presence radiated an icy aloofness—like dormant shards of crystal, sharp and untouchable. He was so cold and distant, people didn’t even dare to look directly at him.
With just one indifferent glance, Gu Yilan made the onlookers around them shiver and quickly walk away.
Su Zesui’s eyes widened in disbelief. Then, after a moment, he finally exhaled in relief.
——Going out with Mr. Gu is amazing.
But Gu Yilan frowned slightly. “Let’s go.”
Su Zesui tugged along his three little bunnies, following behind him with a bounce in his step, visibly more relaxed.
He had never walked through a busy street so comfortably before. Even though the area was packed with people, it felt almost empty. For once, no one was staring at him.
A few minutes later, Gu Yilan stopped in front of a cafe.
“I’m sorry, sir,” said the staff member at the entrance, pointing at a “No Pets” sign. “Pets aren’t allowed inside.”
This cafe was in the heart of A City’s commercial center, where hygiene and service standards were especially strict. Most places here didn’t allow animals.
The butler paused, then instinctively glanced at the boy behind him.
But Su Zesui’s oversized sunglasses covered most of his face. All the butler could see in the reflective lenses… was his own dumbfounded expression.
So that’s why he brought pets.
With animals by his side, crowds scattered instinctively. People didn’t dare approach them, and with pets barred from entering stores, he couldn’t be dragged into any shop either. The humans he feared… couldn’t get anywhere near him.
Gu Yilan, however, showed no surprise. He simply nodded toward the cafe door with his chin. “Go on.”
“Y-yes, Young Master Gu,” the butler replied, quickly stepping inside. But before going in, he couldn’t resist glancing back at the little master.
Su Zesui looked calm on the outside—but under the mask, his face had already scrunched up in nervousness.
The cafe staff at the entrance… was standing so close… way too close…
Instinctively, he inched closer to Gu Yilan’s side.
Just then, a man’s voice called out from inside the cafe—
“Hi, Gu Yilan?”
Su Zesui froze at the sound of the voice. He turned and saw a man in his mid-twenties, sitting near the glass door of the cafe, waving enthusiastically at Gu Yilan.
The man wore a baseball cap and had sharp, handsome features. A laptop and coffee sat on the table in front of him—clearly, he was here to work or study.
Gu Yilan merely gave a faint nod in return, clearly disinterested and showing no intention of engaging in conversation.
But the man in the cafe seemed far more intrigued by Su Zesui, who was standing stiffly beside Gu Yilan. He pushed open the glass door and started walking toward them.
Su Zesui instinctively shrank back, half-hiding behind Gu Yilan. His body trembled slightly as he stared nervously at the approaching man.
His phone vibrated.
[AAA Butler: That’s Young Master Gu’s childhood friend, Gong Chuang. They’re in the same PhD research group at A University.]
Peeking into the cafe, Su Zesui spotted the butler at the counter. The older man gave him a kind smile and subtly gestured at him to check his messages.
[AAA Butler: Don’t worry, Little Master. He’s the only person besides you who’s close to Young Master Gu.]
While Su Zesui was sneaking glances at his phone, Gong Chuang was studying him in return.
The boy was bundled up tight, fully covered, but his posture and demeanor gave away his youth. His outfit was from a luxury brand favored by pampered young elites—costing at least forty or fifty thousand yuan. Clearly, he was someone’s spoiled young master.
What stunned Gong Chuang the most was that the boy was trembling so hard behind Gu Yilan that even Gu Yilan seemed to be vibrating slightly in response—yet Gu Yilan didn’t push him away or snap, “If you’re going to tremble, do it somewhere else.”
With obvious curiosity, Gong Chuang asked, “Who’s this adorable little one?”
Gu Yilan didn’t answer.
Su Zesui quietly whispered, almost inaudibly through his mask, “Fiancee.”
But his voice was so soft, Gong Chuang didn’t catch it.
Still staring at the boy, Gong Chuang turned back to Gu Yilan. “You’re dating such a well-behaved kid now and you’re not going to introduce him to me?”
Already irritable from a sleepless night, Gu Yilan’s expression darkened. He opened his mouth slightly and replied impatiently, “What are you doing here?”
After twenty years of friendship, Gong Chuang immediately sensed the subject change.
He let out a short laugh and was about to circle the conversation back when he met Gu Yilan’s icy black eyes—eyes laced with a strange mix of hostility and suppressed fury.
He paused, then decided to answer honestly: “I’ve made some progress with topological invariants in AdS space and CFT. I thought I’d come out to clear my head while waiting for coffee. Since I saw you, I figured I’d say hello.”
His tone was natural, reasoning clear—he truly seemed to want to talk academic matters.
Su Zesui lowered his pretty eyes and clenched the three tangled leashes in his hand.
The three little white rabbits were exhausted from hopping around. They were now curled up lazily on top of his shoes, squinting their red eyes in the sunlight—soft and fluffy, incredibly cute.
He couldn’t help but envy Gong Chuang—so articulate, so confident. He’d known Mr. Gu since childhood and now worked in the same research group.
Su Zesui rarely left the house. He didn’t understand the outside world. He simply stayed home every day, hugging his competition prep books, waiting for Mr. Gu to come home.
Now he realized—when Mr. Gu spent all those long hours at the lab, it was this man he was seeing.
“What kind of progress?” Gu Yilan asked calmly.
“I’ve been trying to extend the AdS/CFT duality—the mapping between high-dimensional spaces and low-dimensional quantum field theories—into more complex dimensional frameworks,” Gong Chuang said, rubbing his forehead. “But I’ve hit a few roadblocks. It’s tough.”
Su Zesui perked his ears, listening closely—though he didn’t understand a word.
His fingers ached from the taut leashes, but he didn’t loosen his grip.
Through the dark tint of his sunglasses, he scanned the busy street around him—gray, crowded, noisy.
If Gu Yilan went inside, that would leave him alone out here, holding three rabbits. People would definitely come up to pet them, and then… then they’d talk to him.
That thought terrified him—but there was nothing he could do.
Because he was sure Mr. Gu would be interested in what Gong Chuang had just said.
Su Zesui had seen it in those competition books—Mr. Gu’s love for physics was obsessive, nearly fanatical. Even the so-called “useless” competition problems, Mr. Gu would still go through patiently with him, breaking down the principles and extensions, before casually glancing over to ask, “Anything else you don’t understand?”
So Su Zesui braced himself for the inevitable—for Gu Yilan to raise a brow, yawn lazily, and say, “I’m going inside. Wait for me here.”
But just then, Gu Yilan finally spoke.
The man let out a cold laugh, his face blank and his voice even colder.
“Great research direction. Keep going—you’ll soon discover that physics doesn’t exist.”
Su Zesui: “…”
Gong Chuang: “???”
Gong Chuang let out a disbelieving laugh, half amused and half annoyed. He stepped forward to slap Gu Yilan on the shoulder.
“What’s wrong with you? You looking down on my research topic or what? Come inside—I’ll explain it to you properly.”
But Gu Yilan subtly stepped back, putting distance between them.
At the prospect of being touched, his expression and tone immediately turned icy. “Your research topic,” he said flatly, “has nothing to do with me.”
Gong Chuang: “?”
So heartless. How did this man even manage to get into a relationship?